Beaten all Records

Whether it was daytime (Europe) or night (Asia and Australia), sunny (United Arab Emirates) or rainy (Slovenia), spirits were high right from the start at 11am UTC, as runners of all levels were on the road in the movement to find a cure for spinal cord injury. In all, people of 203 nationalities signed up for the race where participation is what matters and everyone can set his or her own running goals, covering a combined total of 1,255,000km worldwide.

Giorgio Calcaterra of Italy was crowned men’s Global Champion of the third annual Wings for Life World Run, outstripping the event’s moving Catcher Car finish line to a winning distance of 88.44km that saw him become the first runner in the history of the race to break 80km.

In earning the women’s title, Japan’s Kaori Yoshida also rewrote the record books in spectacular fashion, becoming the event’s first woman to break 60km and setting a new benchmark of 65.71km. Find all the results here.

Every runner contributed to a pair of new records for the event, with an unprecedented number of registered participants – 130,732 across 34 official locations, plus 20,556 Selfie Runners – as well as sponsors and other donors, raising a landmark amount for spinal cord injury research: 6.6 million euros!

“The challenges faced by those with spinal cord injury are enormous. It’s not just about being unable to walk. It’s also about what you don’t see, like bladder and bowel issues, breathing problems or chronic pain,” said Wings for Life CEO Anita Gerhardter. “So congratulations and thank you to everyone who took part, donated or volunteered. You’re giving hope to those living with spinal cord injury, and the funds you’ve raised will empower brilliant researchers to move forward with their work. They won’t stop until a cure is found – and I hope you won’t, either.”

Registration is now open for many locations of the next Wings for Life World Run on May 7, 2017. To register and for more information, visit www.wingsforlifeworldrun.com